Populate a Navigation Controller on First Launch - swift

Question

When my app is first launched I want to create some sample data that new users will see. I'd like them to start a level (maybe more) into the navigation controller, like so:
tableViewController0 -> tvc1 (user starts here)
Picture a notes app that has folders as its top level of navigation. You might want to show the user a few sample notes in a sample folder first, then let him/her go back later and create new folders.
My thought was that I'd run a method in application didFinishLaunchingWithOptions that would check for first launch (checking/setting a Bool in NSUserDefaults) and then, if we are in the first launch, create some sample data. Then I thought I could just create each view controller and set my UINavigationController's viewControllers property, but I get this error:
'NSInternalInconsistencyException', reason: 'unable to dequeue a cell with identifier Cell - must register a nib or a class for the identifier or connect a prototype cell in a storyboard'
(The cell definitely does have an identifier Cell in the storyboard and works if I don't create the data and view controllers beforehand.)
Some sample code from my AppDelegate:
func application(application: UIApplication, didFinishLaunchingWithOptions launchOptions: [NSObject: AnyObject]?) -> Bool {
// From Xcode's stock AppDelegate
// Override point for customization after application launch.
let splitViewController = self.window!.rootViewController as! UISplitViewController
let navigationController = splitViewController.viewControllers[splitViewController.viewControllers.count-1] as! UINavigationController
navigationController.topViewController.navigationItem.leftBarButtonItem = splitViewController.displayModeButtonItem()
splitViewController.delegate = self
let masterNavigationController = splitViewController.viewControllers[0] as! UINavigationController
// Check for first launch, get back a sample object.
if isFirstLaunch == true {
let newObject = prepareFirstLaunch()
let tvc0 = TableViewController0()
tvc0.managedObjectContext = managedObjectContext
let tvc1 = TableViewController1()
tvc1.someObject = newObject
masterNavigationController.viewControllers = [tvc1, tvc0]
} else {
// this is moved from the stock AppDelegate down into this else statement.
let controller = masterNavigationController.topViewController as! TableViewController0
controller.managedObjectContext = self.managedObjectContext
}
return true
}
private func isFirstLaunch() -> Bool {
// return whether we're launching for the first time
}
private func prepareSampleObject() -> SomeObject {
/*
If we're launching for the first time
create someObject, create some other objects that are owned
by this object in CoreData, set up their relationships, etc.
*/
return someObject
}
Is there another way I can set this up so the user can jump right into a populated navigation stack rather than having to start at the top level?

Answer 1

You're using storyboards, which means you have an initial view controller.
Make this initial view controller a UINavigationController whose rootViewController is some SetupViewController where all of your checking logic occurs. Show a UIActivityIndicatorView in it, or whatever loading animation. Then, depending on what you've found, push either the dummy notes screen or the top-level folder screen.
In the storyboard, you will create two segues from the SetupViewController--one to the notes, one to the folder. Give each segue its own name. You call performSegueWithIdentifier in the code where you determine which screen is getting pushed.